Presentation "The Girls from Afghanistan" tells of the meeting between a rug dealer and Azar, an Afghan girl from Herat, during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the nineteen eighties. Hossein, the dealer, returns to his country of origin to visit relatives and buy rugs to sell in Italy, the country he has resided in since the sixties. On his arrival he discovers that rugs are for sale with completely new motifs. He is curious about the descriptions and seeks out these rugs. His inquiries take him to Dogharon, the Iranian refugee camp on the Afghan border, where hundreds of Afghans are sheltering after the Russian invasion. At the camp he meets Arash, the head of the Afghan clan Kuroshi, from Do-Ab, his young daughter Azar and other girls: the youthful Neda, the weaver Ozra, who will tell the incredible story of Najibe, an eleven-year-old child who was taken from the presidential palace and thrown into prison. He will purchase 'talking rugs' from Azar and Ozra, woven with symbols that tell a painful story - their own and that of the Afghan people. The painstaking translation into English by Katherine Margaret Clifton of the second edition of 'The Girls from Afghanistan' has been enriched with maps, photographs and an updated historical timeline. There are also three important final chapters: a glossary of the Persian terminology (Farsi Dari) used in the book; a timeline of important historical events in Iran and Afghanistan from 1499 to 2015 and 'a conversation with the author, Hossein Fayaz'.
About the Author: Hossein Fayaz Torshizi was born in Iran (1943, Kashmar) and has been an Italian citizen since 1981. He has been married for more than forty years to an Italian and they have a daughter and two grandchildren. He is a human rights activist and a supporter of Direct Democracy for citizens. He holds a secondary school diploma in agricultural sciences: (1962, Tabriz, Iran). Since November 1967 he has lived in Italy. He attended the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Perugia. In October 1970 he began his humanistic studies at the Libera Università degli Studi di Urbino, attending the School of Journalism, and on February 22nd 1974 he was granted the Diploma of Professional Journalistic Culture. His thesis was entitled "Considerations on the Italian-Iranian commercial exchanges, also with reference to oil." At the same university, he attended the Writing Workshop organized by the stituto di Ricerca e Analisi del Discorso, and courses on essay writing and on journalistic, political and trade union language. In the working world, until December 31st 2005 and for thirty-four years, he was the director and owner of a number of companies and import-export firms in the provinces of Pesaro, Urbino and Rimini, mainly in the sector of Persian and Oriental rugs. He has also been a consultant for the Chamber of Commerce on national and foreign rugs and tapestries since 1981. Nowadays, he dedicates most of his time to writing. In Italy he has published 'Potere dei cittadini', 2014; 'La prima domenica di maggio a Glarona', 2013; 'Le ragazze afgane', prima edizione, 2013; 'Il manuale dei tappeti', 2008; 'Dialogo e Integrazione', 2005; 'Io musulmano in Italia - Quale Islam in Europa?', 2004. In Iran he has published 'East and West - Dialogue between friends' (in Persian) 2005, Mashhad; Iran, the reasons for the non-development (in Persian) 2005, Mashhad; 'The village teacher in Orteh-Cheshemeh - Quchan' (in Persian) 1988, Teheran, Iran.